The present invention relates to a photoradiator for diffusing light to the ambience which is introduced thereinto from a light conducting cable or the like. The photoradiator is usable, for example, as a light source for photosynthetic reactions.
To meet the increasing demand for energy saving today, effective use of solar energy has been studied in various fields actively. For the most effective use of solar energy, it is the primary requisite that the solar energy be used as optical energy without being transformed into another kind of energy such as thermal energy or electrical energy. In light of this, the applicant has proposed in various forms a lighting system in which the sunlight converged by lenses or the like is introduced into light conducting cables to propagate therethrough to desired locations.
Light advancing through a light conducting cable has directivity. Hence, concerning the application of the solar energy to lighting as stated above, the angular range available for the radiation of light is usually not larger than about 46 degrees when the light is discharged from a simply cut end of the light conducting cable. Such a narrow radiation range is incapable of lighting a room or the like in an even luminous intensity distribution. The applicant has made various propositions concerned with a photoradiator which effectively diffuses light introduced thereinto from a light conducting cable over substantial range and in an even luminous intensity distribution.
Meanwhile, fish farming or like industry requires zooplunkton in order to feed small fish or the like. Zooplunkton, in turn, propagates with chlorella employed as a feed. What is necessary for effective cultivation of chlorella is the adequate supply of optical energy and carbon dioxide, as well known in the art. A dillematic situation encountered with chlorella cultivation is that as chlorella propagates to a substantial density, it prevents light from reaching distant places with its own shadow and, thereby, fails to be evenly supplied with optical energy. The lighting systems and photoradiators proposed by the applicant are a solution to such a situation.
The present invention constitutes an improvement over the proposed photoradiators.